2005/07/02 by Joseph F. Johnson
Physics and Astronomy · #quant-ph
published as Quantum Theory and Symmetries III, Cincinnati 2003, ed. by Argyres et al, Singapore, 2004, pp.133-143 · slightly revised version of published version
arxiv created 2005/07/02 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01
We construct a rigourous model of quantum measurement. A two-state model of a negative temperature amplifier, such as a laser, is taken to a classical thermodynamic limit. In the limit, it becomes a classical measurement apparatus obeying the stochastic axioms of quantum mechanics. Thus we derive the probabilities from a deterministic Schroedinger's equation by procedures analogous to those of classical statistical mechanics. This requires making precise the notion of `macroscopic.'